Kissed By A Rose
by Red is the new Blonde
Summary: AU Nobody came to pick up Aeris at the trainstation, so she ran away aimlessly in Midgar, due to the kindness of a woman that happened to be the Presidents wife, Aeris is now living with the Shinras. Full Summary in Profile.


Random Reno Fangirl 05 (R R F): Hello people who actually clicked on this fic because they were interested or it was an accident. But whatever, this is my AU fic, so almost everything is different so I want no complaining about pairings/storyline/characters/etc… But please warn me if you catch any OOC-ness and I will work as hard as I can to fix that but it will be difficult for me since I'm generally a humor writer and OOC-ness is something I generally use for humor and this is my FIRST ever attempt to make a serious fic. And finally if anyone is just going to bash/flame the pairing because they hate it, just…no, just don't leave a review at all, what I do accept is constructive criticism because it at least tells me what I need to work on, now if you're just going to criticize the pairing, the back button is in the upper left hand on the screen so push it and leave. If you hate the pairing leave, it's as simple as that because it's an opinion, and you can't change mine through a flame with no reasoning other then your opinion to support it. The fic is also more-so Aeris centered so romance will come later, drama first. Am I forgetting anything?

Sandy (muse): Disclaimer…

R R F: Right, well, say it Sand!

Sandy: Random Reno Fangirl 05 doesn't own squat, not even Siren (it just the name to Mrs. Shinra), Square does so don't sue us…

* * *

The passengers of the train that arrived in Sector 5 ignored the injured woman who had stumbled out with her daughter and collapsed on the steps. They just passed by them not even glancing at the dying mother and whimpering daughter like they saw it everyday and it was nothing new to them.

'Someone please…' The dying mother thought hopefully for someone to take in her daughter. She looked at her precious daughter, Aeris. Tears were filled in her emerald eyes and she was sobbing uncontrollably while crying something along the lines of 'Mama, please don't leave me!' And all Ifalna could do is pray someone would come along and take her daughter in.

Seconds turned into minutes, minutes felt like ages for them. Ifalna gradually felt life slipping through her fingers and no one gave a second glance at them. Tears welled up in her eyes when reality sank in, 'No one's coming…'

"Aeris…" Ifalna started while sputtering a bit. Aeris continued to sob but she was able to tone it down to sniffling so she could hear her mother's last words. "…I love you and I'm sorry…you're on your own from here on out…"

"Mama, no you can't leave me! I don't wanna be alone!" Aeris cried her breathing becoming uneven again.  
"…I'm sorry…run away from here…" Ifalna requested and she shut her eyes for the last time. Aeris broke out in tears and buried her face in her hands not leaving her mother's side. Feelings of despair, hopelessness, sorrow, and loneliness flooded her body as realization hit her; the only person in the world that loved her and she loved back was gone. She was all alone now.

A train guard had caught sight of the scene and shook his head in pity for the girl. When he approached Aeris, he tapped her on the shoulder to get her attention figuring he could take her to an orphanage or something.

Aeris looked up at the guard through her tears and remembered her mother's last words to her, 'run away from here.' And so she decided to respect her mother's wishes. She shook off the guard's hand and took off without a second thought running aimlessly through the slums of Midgar.

Aeris ran through alleyways, streets, corners, twists and turns like a blind bat, completely clueless as to where she was. Out of breath after about ten minutes, Aeris leaned on a wall in an alley and slid down to the floor and hugged her knees and let the tears fall. All she could think about was how alone she was and how she had to take care of herself.

She lay against the wall a few minutes longer quietly sniffling until she had gathered enough energy to continue her aimless wandering through the big city. If Aeris hadn't been so sullen she probably would've been fascinated by how large and noisy Midgar was and with all the way things worked.

She continued to wander around Sector 5 till she had reached an old wooden church that caught her eye. She stared at it for a few minutes and she strolled in deciding in there was safer than out in the slums.

When she entered, Aeris had temporarily forgotten her sorrow for a second as she took in the beauty of the old church. Stained-glass windows, oak pews, and in a certain spot in the church where the wooden floor was torn up, flowers bloomed. Aeris smiled slightly as she strolled down the aisle glancing left and right in slight amazement.

The young girl approached the flowers in the center and crouched down to take a better look. She had never seen flowers till now and she was slightly mesmerized by the plant's beauty. She gazed at it for a bit longer till she noticed that all her crying combined with her running had made her exhausted and tired. She yawned, crawled behind a pew, curled up in a comfortable position and fell asleep.

* * *

Aeris awoke with a start when the doors burst open to the church. She rubbed the sleepiness out of her eyes and blinked. She heard footsteps from behind the pew and her heart began to beat faster. She was within the presence of a complete stranger and she began to fear what would happen if she was found.

Aeris pressed her body against the pew to remain hidden and tried to stay quite but she accidentally let a whimper escape her breath. She silently prayed the visitor didn't hear it but her hopes were killed when she heard the footsteps approach in her direction.

"Is anyone here?" A woman's voice asked the footsteps abruptly stopping.

No reply.

'Please go away…' Aeris mentally begged.

"Hmmm, funny, thought I heard something…" The woman mused to herself.

Aeris let out a soft gasp, and quickly slapped a hand to her mouth to keep herself quiet. 'Stupid, stupid, stupid!' She mentally kicked herself as she heard the footsteps get nearer and nearer to her hiding spot. It was only a matter of time…

"Oh my god…" Aeris heard a voice above her gasp. She looked up and she met the gaze of the woman's icy blue eyes, and she was peering down at Aeris from behind the pew.

Aeris wanted to run, but she couldn't, she was frozen with anxiety, nervousness, and fear. Her green eyes continued to stare at the woman, who was utterly shocked.

The woman suddenly shook her head and walked around the pew and kneeled down in front of Aeris. Aeris noticed the woman was very pretty, long blonde fine hair, looked rather tall, looked in her early or mid thirties, and had soft features.

"My god, what happened to you?" She asked looking sympathetic to the little girl.

Aeris shook her head refusing to answer.

The blonde looked at Aeris with what she figured was probably pity. "Okay, well, how about I tell you my name and you tell me your story?"

Aeris just stared at her and felt tears beginning to fill her eyes again.

"Alright, my name's Siren Shinra," She extended her hand out to Aeris in a friendly manner. "You?"

Aeris hesitantly put her hand in Siren's and mumbled her name. Siren wore a slight smile. "See how easy that was? Now, where's your mom?"

Aeris looked up quickly and memories flooded her mind, she suddenly drooped her head down and muttered, "My mom died…"

Siren face suddenly became solemn and sympathetic. "You poor dear…" She reached out a hand to stroke Aeris's brown hair out of her face. "So you've got nowhere to go…" She started.

"You're going to send me to an orphanage right?" Aeris guessed.

Sirenia smiled slightly and stood up. "No," she said. "But I'll make you an offer."

Aeris's eyes brightened. "An offer? What kind of offer?"

Siren smiled at the child's curiosity. "I can leave you here and you can continue to live in the slums," Aeris face fault. "Or, you can come with me, it's all up to you."

Aeris blinked in shock, someone was actually offering her protection. Aeris didn't even need to think about her options for long, it was simple to her, stay in the slums and die, or take this kind woman's offer and live with her.

"So what's it going to be?" Siren asked extending her hand out to Aeris if she wanted to grab it or turn around. The seven year-old grinned and slipped her hand in the blonde's.

Siren beamed, and Aeris could tell she was a warm-hearted person, like her mother.

"I imagine you'd probably liked to get cleaned up and eat and then rest?" The blonde said as she led Aeris out the church and towards her car.

That was true, she was practically starving and she looked like a mess, her brown hair was tangled, her face was tear stained from all the crying she was doing, and her clothes were sticky from her sweating. So Aeris nodded eagerly.

They reached a white car and Siren opened the back door and Aeris clambered in followed by Siren, apparently she had a chauffer.

Siren had told the driver to take her home when he asked 'Where to?'

"Um, excuse me, but where do you live?" Aeris asked politely.

"Oh, on top of the Pillar is where we live." Siren answered.

"We? As in you and your husband?"

Siren laughed a bitter laugh. "Hardly, all he does is spend all his time in his company because he thinks he's so high and mighty, the two of us live in different homes, him in his company, me in my house. Anyways, 'we' as in me and my son." She replied.

Aeris perked up a little at the thought of maybe making friends with her son. Many questions were beginning to form in her head like, 'How old is he?' or 'What's his name?' or even 'What's he like?' but she kept her mouth closed and looked out the window during the rest of the car ride.

Around ten minutes later Siren announced they've arrived and Aeris gaped as she looked at the house in awe.

"You live here?" She exclaimed as she stared at the elegant white mansion in front of her. Siren giggled slightly at Aeris's amazement. "But of course." She answered. "Now come on in, I'm sure you'd rather eat first and then explore the house." She added while leading Aeris up the steps and to the glass doors to the house.

Aeris couldn't help but just look at the scenery outside, it was magnificent to her, the garden with a few fountains here and there, and the yard was flourished with all sorts of colors from wild plants and flowers of all sorts.

Aeris followed Sirenia inside and she glance all around the house in curiosity. "Come now, kitchen's down the hall." Siren said as she led her to said kitchen where another woman was cooking. The smell of pasta reached the young girl's nose and Aeris swallowed in anticipation.

"Excuse me Helen, is the food ready?" Siren asked to catch the other woman's attention.

Helen spun around surprised, "Oh, Miss Shinra, I was not expecting you home so soon…"

"Yes, well, I had a little bit of a problem you could say." Siren explained while Aeris attempted to hide behind her leg to avoid Helen's gaze.

"Not something terrible right?" The cook inquired, Helen's brown eyes then caught sight of the little girl clinging to Siren's leg; she smiled warmly at the little girl. "Why, hello there, and who's this?" She asked.

Aeris inched more behind Siren with a bit of fear. Siren looked down at the child a slight smile of amusement graced her face.

"C'mon now, go and tell Helen your name, don't worry she won't bite…besides, she'll learn your name eventually since she works here and you'll be living here." Siren lightly urged.

"Aye. I'll learn your name sooner or later." Helen agreed as she bent down slightly attempting to look at Aeris in the eye.

Aeris stared down at her feet and began to fidget slightly with embarrassment about how silly she was being. "Aeris…" She introduced in a small shaky voice.

"That's a pretty name you've got there, and such a cute girl you are to boot. So Aeris, do you like pasta?" Helen asked.

The brunette nodded.

"Wonderful!" Helen exclaimed while brushing her black hair out of her brown eyes. "It should be ready in about ten to fifteen minutes, if that's alright." She said looking up at Siren for approval.

Siren stroked her chin as if she was thinking, "Hmm… ten to fifteen minutes…well…I guess in that time you could get cleaned up, how's that sound to you?" She asked the child standing next to her.

Aeris nodded eagerly, she really needed to bathe, and she felt icky covered in all that dirt and grime and sweat. "Alright then, follow me then dear, the bathroom's down this hall." Siren said grasping Aeris's small hand in hers and leading her to the bathroom.

When the two reached the bathroom Siren informed her how the shower worked and such, and she went to fetch her some clothes for when Aeris was done. "When you're finished dinner should be ready so just head to the kitchen and Helen will give you dinner, if you need anything just call for me, got it?" Aeris nodded, "Good, see you in a bit."

When Aeris was finished showering she reached for the clothes Siren grabbed for her and noticed a small note on it, Aeris stared at it for a minute trying to comprehend the message, which read:

_Sorry about the clothes, tomorrow I'll take you shopping to buy something more appropriate._

_XOXOXO_

_Siren_

Aeris didn't really care that she had to wear a white T-shirt and jeans, she was just grateful to have clothes, _clean_ clothes especially.

Aeris wandered into the kitchen where it appeared Helen was finishing up her cooking while humming a delightful tune. Aeris patiently stood there waiting like the polite girl she was, she waited a minute till Helen finally noticed her.

"Oh! Well, I just finished cooking, so go take a seat and I'll bring the food over to you." She told her. Aeris did as she was instructed and clambered onto a chair letting her dangling feet sway slightly. About a second later Helen placed a large portion of pasta in front of Aeris.

Aeris's eyes became wide with disbelief at her big plate of food in front of her, she looked up at the smiling Helen, "This is all for me?" She asked with doubt.

Helen nodded while she continued to smile, "You look famished, so I thought you'd like a lot of food."

"I am hungry, but I don't think I can eat it all…"

"Just eat as much as you can dear, I'll clean up the leftovers, so no worries. Now, I'm off to call Siren and her boy to tell her dinner's ready." And without another word Helen took off upstairs.

Aeris wanted to wait for Siren thinking it would be rude of her to start without her, but the scent and looks were just too tempting, she dug into her pasta and sighed at how swell it tasted and what it was like to eat again.

About two minutes later Helen came back down and soon after Siren and a boy that looked about Aeris's age with blonde hair and piercing blue eyes. 'He must be her son.' Aeris mused to herself noticing the similarities between the two. Siren led the boy to a chair next to Aeris and she introduced the two as she placed a plate of pasta in front of the boy.

"Aeris, this is my son, Rufus, he's six years old, and Rufus, this is Aeris, the girl I told you about, I'm sure you'll get along just fine, now, I'll leave you two alone to get acquainted with each other, and I'll go eat with Helen." And so Siren and Helen left, left Aeris alone with Rufus.

'Well, at least I can make a friend.' Aeris thought happily to herself as she looked at Rufus, who stared at her with his icy blue eyes.

"Hi Rufus! Your mom seems nice, and so does Helen, I like them; I like your house too. I hope we can be friends." Aeris complimented cheerfully with a warm smile. Rufus continued to stare at her as if she was a commoner.

Silence fell over the two kids.

"I don't care…" He sneered in a superior tone.

Aeris frowned, "What'd I-?" She stated but was interrupted.

"I don't care what you think, I don't like you, you're trying to steal Mom away from me!" He accused.

Aeris stared down at the table, "It's not like that," she whispered feeling hurt and rejected. 'He doesn't even know me and already doesn't like me…'

They continued to eat in silence, Aeris tried not to look Rufus in the eye, but she felt his piercing gaze on her, it made her feel nervous. When she was done, she wanted to sleep and Siren lead her to a spare room that was now hers and gave her an additional change of clothes. When Aeris crawled into bed she reflected on everything that happened today and found she was crying herself to sleep…despite having great living conditions, she figured life was going to be tough.

And the last thing Rufus said to her kept ringing in her head and the fact that he doesn't like her were her last thoughts before drifting away.

* * *

R R F (Or RitnB since I changed my name): Whew…this is so hard for me to write without making it funny and I had soooo much writer's block. Anyways, I've got a question, now that we have this 'Reply' button to reviewers, are we no allowed to make review corners anymore, and if we do make one, will we get in trouble? Anyways, please review and tell me what you think. 


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